Michael Fishbach and his colleagues were recently on a small boat when they encountered a humpback whale entangled in a fishing net and on the verge of death.

Fishbach and Gershon Cohen founded The Great Whale Conservancy to help and protect whales, but never before had they been able to directly save one themselves.

With just a small knife and little time, the three men took over an hour to untangle the complex web of nylon netting. When finally the whale was freed, its display of joy is obvious, captured on video taken by another passenger.